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38 Sports Oakville Beaver Call Today for our Special Promotions 905-304-4774 or 1-866-929-4774 www.uniquepools.ca SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 255) Fax 905-337-5567 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · FRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2007 O Canada: By Herb Garbutt OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Three locals named to world junior squad NATIONAL TEAMERS: Pictured from top, local residents John Tavares, Steve Mason and Stefan Legein will play for Team Canada in the upcoming IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship. lowed it up Wednesday with 15 saves as he and Tyson Sexsmith combined on a shutout. Like Tavares, Mason was also in camp last year, but his A year ago, Sam Gagner slipped into town after arriving bid to make the team ended before it even got started. In his home from Sweden and celebrated his gold medal at the final game with the London Knights before camp opened, IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship with some of his Mason suffered a concussion. Unable to even skate with the high school friends. national junior team in practice, he was bypassed. And like This year, if Canada can manage to capture a fourth Tavares, he took it out on the rest of the OHL by winning the straight gold in the Czech Republic, Oakville might as well league's top goalie honours. host a parade. Three local players made the grade when Mason began laying the groundwork for a spot on the coach Craig Hartsburg announced Canada's final roster yes- national junior team with great performances in the terday morning. Canada-Russia Super Series. The Columbus Blue Jackets, Among them is John Tavares. Tavares wasn't around to who selected Mason in the third round in 2006, then kept help Gagner celebrate last year, though the the 6-foot-3 netminder with the team for the two are close friends. The Oshawa Generals "I didn't want that 7 first week of the NHL season, though he didcentre was too busy avenging his snub by the o'clock phone call. n't get into any regular-season games before national team by ripping up the OHL on his When I got the knock returning to the Knights. way toward earning Canadian Hockey League Mason beat out Leland Irving, a member on the door and the player of the year honours. of last year's gold-medal team, for one of the Joining Tavares on this year's national congratulations, it two goaltending spots on the Canadian junior squad will be former Oakville Rangers Steve was great." team. He and Jonathan Bernier will battle for Mason and Stefan Legein. the No. 1 job. Though Tavares' chances of getting cut OHL star John Tavares For Legein, making the national junior again were slim, history has proven there's squad is just the latest accomplishment in a rarely a sure thing when it comes to Canada setting a line- wildly successful calendar year. Thought of as a mid-to-lateup for international competition. So when a coach's meet- round draft pick for much of 2006, Legein was a late injury ing dragged on yesterday morning, the team knew final cuts replacement for the Top Prospects game, in which he scored were coming. a goal and raised his draft stock. He was then taken in the sec"Last year was so disappointing," Tavares said. "I didn't ond round by the Blue Jackets in June's NHL draft, was want that 7 o'clock phone call. I didn't want to have that named to Canadian team that dominated Russia in the Super feeling again so when I got the knock on the door and the Series in the fall and recently signed his first pro contract. And congratulations, it was great." now he'll be looking for gold in the Czech Republic. And among the first to offer their congratulations was "It's been crazy," Legein said from Calgary. "You like to Gagner. Tavares' former minor hockey teammate also think you're one of the best players in Canada, but there are offered up a piece of advice. so many great players." "He just said to make sure I'm ready for the tournament Though he turned in a strong performance in the because he said he didn't think he was fully ready," Tavares Canada-Russia Super Series, Legein still felt he needed a said. "Other than that, he just said it's a great experience and strong camp to make the team. He wasted little time makto have fun." ing an impression. He scored twice and set up his team's Though the Ontario Hockey League's scoring leader other goal in a 3-2 victory in the first intrasquad game. That, knows he will be counted upon to provide offence, he knows despite playing with Brandon Sutter on what was intended he must contribute in other ways as well. to be a checking line. "I know I'll get my shot to produce but I'll do anything I "It's something I do, something I enjoy," he said of the can do to help contribute -- make sure I'm responsible all shutdown role. "Goals, if I get them, are more of a bonus -- over the ice and the chances will come." a bonus for me and for the team." That's exactly what Tavares did in the team's intrasquad And once again he'll have a chance to play with his forgames. Though Tavares didn't register a point, it was his mer Oakville Rangers teammate, Mason. Both played in the work along the boards that caused a turnover to set up Super Series and they were both drafted by Columbus and Legein's goal in their team's 3-2 victory on Tuesday. were reunited for the Blue Jackets' training camp. Mason also began erasing the memories of last year's try"We've been seeing a lot of each other," Legein said. "I out camp in that game by stopping 11 of 12 shots. He fol- guess it shows we had good coaching growing up." Loyola seniors a quiet 5-0 in boys' high school basketball Flying under the radar seems to appeal to the Loyola Hawks senior boys' basketball team. While the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders, Holy Trinity Titans and Assumption Crusaders were identified as early-season favourites for a Halton Division 1 championship, there had been little talk about the Hawks. That might change now that Loyola is off to a 5-0 start in league play, maintaining its undefeated mark with an impressive come-from-behind 51-41 win at Abbey Park Wednesday afternoon. The Hawks trailed by as many as 12 points in the first half, when they struggled trying to contain Abbey Park big man Pat Donnelly, and were down 28-18 at the intermission. Loyola changed its defensive strategy at halftime, hoping to limit Donnelly's touches, and outscored the Eagles 33-13 in the final 16 minutes. "Pat's their main man," said Loyola's Ostap Choliy, the Hawks' top scorer with 13 points. "If we stopped him, the rest of their team wasn't going to do as well." Donnelly basically had his way in the first half, using a variety of inside moves to score 15 points and adding a number of offensive rebounds. He was limited to six points in the second half as the Hawks pressured Abbey Park's ball-handlers, not allowing the Eagles to get the ball inside. Loyola's Sean Kirkconnell did an effective job of guarding Donnelly in the second half as well. Matt Ozimec drained a three-pointer at the end of the third quarter, pulling the Hawks to within 35-33. Loyola took its first lead of the game on a wide-open trey by Ryan Muldoon, going up 36-35 with seven minutes to go, and would not trail again. Ozimec finished the game with 10 points. Adrian Zagabe (nine), Matt Kennedy (six) and Michael L'African (four) also contributed at the offensive end for Loyola. Greg Stewart scored eight points and Mike Sebben added six in a losing cause for the Eagles, who also gave Aquinas a stiff test earlier this year but are now 1-3 on the season. In winning all five of its games, Loyola has outscored its opposition 308-184. The Hawks' competition will get much tougher after Christmas, however, when they are scheduled to face Trinity and Aquinas for the first time in league play. "There isn't a lot of pressure on us," Choliy said. "We're kind of the underdogs." -- Jon Kuiperij